Best Time To Post On Instagram For Business (NOT WHEN YOU THINK)
One of the most common questions I get from clients is: When should I actually post on Instagram for my business? Or does it even matter?
And this answer has multiple parts but it's definitely going to be important for you to understand when you're promoting your own business on Instagram.
My name is Megan and I teach business owners to go from confused to confident on Instagram. I help my clients build a loyal community, get quality clients from Instagram, and build a more profitable business.
Look, ideally the best time to post on Instagram is when your target audience is on the app. Right? This is because Instagram's algorithm takes into account various factors such as engagement, recency of posts, and watch time when figuring out what to actually put on a user's feed. So naturally, posting when your audience is actually online will benefit you just because there's a higher likelihood of them actually engaging with it and having time to watch your videos. And I know what you're thinking: "Megan, how do I know when my audience is going to be on Instagram?" Here are a few things to help you figure that out.
Number one, think about your ideal client. What are they doing every day, what's their schedule like, when would they realistically have time to even go on Instagram and scroll? You can use this info to rule out certain times of the day. So for example, your ideal client might be working a 9 to 5 they won't be on their phones from 9 to 5 generally. or maybe your type of client is on their phones on their job because they don't want to be at that job anymore! Right? So really play into what type of client you are trying to reach and think in their shoes and work backwards from there.
Number two, look at your analytics. Instagram actually allows you to see when your audience is online. To do this, go to your business account's profile page, then in the top right hand corner, press those three lines and then you're going to select insights. From there you want to press total followers, scroll all the way to the bottom, and there you'll be able to see by day or by hour of the day when people are most likely going to be on Instagram. If your followers are your ideal audience, then this will be pretty accurate to when you want to post. However, if your followers aren't really who you're ideally trying to reach, then you don't really need to pay attention to this. And I want to know in the comments, how often are you checking your business insights? I usually recommend to my clients checking at least once a week that just gives you a clear idea of what's been happening the last seven days and what goals to set for the next seven days.
Okay so now that you know how to post technically at the 'right time' it's equally as important to consider your own schedule as a business owner. Because while posting at the right time is essential, posting consistently is just as important. So if a business owner chooses a time to post that doesn't align with their current schedule, it's going to be really hard to keep up with that long term. And if you pick something that you can't keep up with, then it actually might hurt you more than help you. So you have two options here: you either have to find times where you will be able to for sure post long term or you can find time to schedule out your posts ahead of time so that way they go out when your audience is online. This is completely your own choice, I've had clients prefer one over the other and vice versa so if you have more questions about scheduling out your posts, leave that in the comments below so I can answer them for you.
And I'm going to go over a couple of ways why consistency is actually going to be crucial for your business's growth on social media. Number one, consistency builds trust. When your audience is going online and they're expecting a post from you, they will be very disappointed when they don't see it. So try and get them used to the posting schedule that you want and therefore they can look forward and have some excitement to when you are posting. Creating a content strategy that fits with your own schedule makes it so for the long term you'll actually be able to avoid burnout. Because posting sporadically can actually negatively impact your engagement rate and your follower count, it is best to try and stick to that consistency. I struggle with that sometimes also, it is hard to stay consistent especially when you have so many things going on with your business but it does make a difference. And lastly, I know a lot of people are really adamant about posting as much as you possibly can, however, if you aren't consistent and you can't keep that up for a long period of time your quality of content is going to go down and your consistency is going to go down as well.
So now you have the full equation to knowing exactly when you should post. Number one think about when your ideal audience will be on the platform. Number two, check your insights to confirm if your followers are your ideal clients. And then number three, look at your own schedule see what you can do. Either schedule in advance or make sure you have some free time when you are supposed to be posting. I recommend writing this down in your calendar putting it in your calendar on your phone, whatever works for you, that way you don't miss a single post.
And knowing when to post is just one piece of the Instagram puzzle. There's so much that goes into having a full Instagram strategy. So if that is something you're ready to take on and really grow your socials so that your business can grow as well, now is the perfect time. In my course, the Instagram Pro Bootcamp, I go over everything you need to know about building your Instagram strategy. From how Instagram works from a business owner's perspective, to creating your strategy, creating content, implementing your strategy, and then growing it exponentially from there. So below this video in the description there is a link to book a call with me. It's completely free, all I want to do is get to know you and your business a little bit better to see if we'd be a good fit for working together. I don't accept everyone into the course only people who are truly committed to growing their business with Instagram. I can't wait to chat with you and get you in the course, don't forget to like this video if you found it helpful and then watch this one next see the secret to creating the best Instagram captions. Thanks guys I will see you in the next video!
